Stroke News and Research

RSS

A stroke is a medical emergency. Strokes happen when blood flow to your brain stops. Within minutes, brain cells begin to die. There are two kinds of stroke. The more common kind, called ischemic stroke, is caused by a blood clot that blocks or plugs a blood vessel in the brain. The other kind, called hemorrhagic stroke, is caused by a blood vessel that breaks and bleeds into the brain. "Mini-strokes" or transient ischemic attacks (TIAs), occur when the blood supply to the brain is briefly interrupted.

Stress does not appear to increase risk of developing multiple sclerosis

Contrary to earlier reports, a new study finds that stress does not appear to increase a person's risk of developing multiple sclerosis. The research is published in the May 31, 2011, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

31 May 2011

Study on entire Swedish population affirms significance of hereditary factors for venous thromboembolism

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is the third most common type of cardiovascular disease after coronary heart disease and stroke. Researchers at the Centre for Primary Health Care Research in Malmö have mapped the significance of hereditary factors for venous thromboembolism in the entire Swedish population by studying the risk of VTE in children of parents with VTE compared with the children of parents who have not had VTE.

30 May 2011

'Ultra-bad' cholesterol increases risk of heart disease in people with type 2 diabetes

Scientists from the University of Warwick have discovered why a newly found form of cholesterol seems to be 'ultra-bad', leading to increased risk of heart disease. The discovery could lead to new treatments to prevent heart disease particularly in people with type 2 diabetes and the elderly.

30 May 2011

Lipidomic profiling can lead to better and earlier prediction of major diseases

Studying the genetic make-up of different varieties of lipids in the blood plasma of an individual can lead to a better and earlier prediction of diseases such as diabetes, atherosclerosis, and heart disease, two researchers will tell the annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics today.

30 May 2011

Novel treatment safe and effective for patients with intracerebral hemorrhage

A new treatment that treats a subset of stroke patients by combining minimally invasive surgery, an imaging technique likened to "GPS for the brain," and the clot-busting drug t-PA appears to be safe and effective, according to a multicenter clinical trial led by Johns Hopkins researchers.

30 May 2011

Cholesterol drug Niaspan fails to protect heart: Study

According to researchers at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), increasing the dose of niacin to patients with heart disease who are already taking a cholesterol-lowering statin does nothing extra to prevent heart attacks and strokes. Approximately one out of seven Americans have high blood cholesterol, a main risk factor in heart disease, which kills some 800,000 people in the United States annually.

29 May 2011

Ultra bad cholesterol

Bad cholesterol, known as LDL is known to be sticky but this ultra –bad called MGmin-LDL is found to be stickier meaning it's more likely to attach to arterial walls. This is more dangerous because when LDL attaches to artery walls it forms fatty plaques that cause coronary heart disease (CHD). As fatty plaques grow, they narrow the arteries and reduce blood flow and also may trigger a stroke or heart attack. CHD is the most common type of heart disease and kills almost 450,000 Americans each year.

29 May 2011

Efficacy of Abbott cholesterol drug in question

A latest study has found that using medication to raise good cholesterol while lowering the bad does NOT translate into fewer adverse cardiovascular events like heart attacks and strokes. The study was revealed Thursday by the National Institutes of Health and it found that high dosages of Abbott Laboratories' Niaspan failed to prevent heart attacks and boosted the likelihood of a stroke when combined with the popular generic cholesterol pill Simvastatin, also known under the brand name Zocor.

29 May 2011

New smart phone application provides pediatric and adult ER wait times directly to phone

Managing your health just got easier with the launch of Emergency Room (ER) wait times for adult and pediatric HealthONE ERs throughout the Denver metro area. The new Denver smart phone application, HealthONE Fast LocatER, will provide wait times directly to your smart phone as well as locate the nearest HealthONE ER, find a physician, make an appointment request, call 911 and more.

27 May 2011

Interim analysis of AIM-HIGH study affirms positive impact of Niaspan on HDL and triglyceride lipid values

The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), disclosed results from an interim analysis of the AIM-HIGH clinical trial.

27 May 2011

Disparities based on race and ethnic origin exist in every aspect of stroke care

Disparities between racial/ethnic minorities and whites cross all aspects of stroke care, according to an American Heart Association/American Stroke Association scientific statement.

27 May 2011

NHLBI stops AIM-HIGH combination clinical trial in high blood cholesterol

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health has stopped a clinical trial studying a blood lipid treatment 18 months earlier than planned. The trial found that adding high dose, extended-release niacin to statin treatment in people with heart and vascular disease, did not reduce the risk of cardiovascular events, including heart attacks and stroke.

27 May 2011

Leukemia, psoriasis drugs may treat vascular diseases

A drug that has been on the market for decades to treat leukemia and skin disorders such as acne and psoriasis may be a possible therapy for vascular diseases, including atherosclerosis and hypertension, which can lead to heart attack or stroke.

27 May 2011

Exposure to pesticides near any workplace increases risk of Parkinson's disease

In April 2009, researchers at UCLA announced they had discovered a link between Parkinson's disease and two chemicals commonly sprayed on crops to fight pests.

27 May 2011

ARCA plans to expand development program for Gencaro in atrial fibrillation

ARCA biopharma, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing genetically-targeted therapies for cardiovascular diseases, today announced that it is planning to expand the development of Gencaro, its lead cardiovascular drug candidate, to atrial fibrillation, a disease that affects more than 2.4 million patients in the United States.

27 May 2011

Southern U.S. Stroke Belt population have greater incidence of cognitive decline

27 May 2011

Cognitive decline incidence higher in southern ‘stroke belt’

New research shows that residents of the Stroke Belt—a southern portion of the U.S. with significantly elevated stroke morality rate—also have a greater incidence of cognitive decline than other regions of the country. Researchers believe shared risk factors among members of this population are to blame. Results of this study, funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), are published in Annals of Neurology, a journal of the American Neurological Association.

26 May 2011